×
GreekEnglish

×
  • Politics
  • Diaspora
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Cooking
Wednesday
25
Feb 2026
weather symbol
Athens 13°C
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • World
  • Diaspora
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Mediterranean Cooking
  • Weather
Contact follow Protothema:
Powered by Cloudevo
> World

Hope over new prostate cancer test

Test detects cancer DNA in blood

Newsroom June 19 09:35

Scientists have developed a blood test that could pick out which men with advanced prostate cancer would benefit from a new drug treatment.
The test detects cancer DNA in the blood, helping doctors check whether precision drugs are working.
Cancer Research UK said the test could “greatly improve survival”.
But larger studies involving more men needed to take place to confirm if doctors could rely on the test, the charity said.
Blood samples from 49 men with advanced prostate cancer were collected by researchers, as part of the phase II clinical trial of a drug called olaparib.
This type of precision drug is seen as the future of cancer medicine but because it is a targeted treatment, the drug does not work for everyone.
Researchers from The Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust said the test could help target treatment better and also reduce its side effects.
They used it to identify men who were not responding to the treatment in four to eight weeks and also to pick up signs that the cancer was evolving and becoming resistant to the drugs.

‘Major impact’
Prof Johann de Bono, consultant medical oncologist at the two organisations, said: “From these findings, we were able to develop a powerful, three-in-one test that could in future be used to help doctors select treatment, check whether it is working and monitor the cancer in the longer term.”
He added: “Not only could the test have a major impact on treatment of prostate cancer, but it could also be adapted to open up the possibility of precision medicine to patients with other types of cancer.”
Dr Aine McCarthy, senior science information officer at Cancer Research UK, said the blood test was an “exciting” development.
“The test has the potential to greatly improve survival for the disease by ensuring patients get the right treatment for them at the right time and that they aren’t being given a treatment that’s no longer working,” she said.
“Further studies involving a larger group of men will confirm if doctors should use this test when treating patients with advanced prostate cancer.”
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men.
Over 46,000 men are diagnosed with the disease every year in the UK.
Dr Matthew Hobbs, from Prostate Cancer UK, said: “The results from this study and others like it are crucial as they give an important understanding of the factors that drive certain prostate cancers, or make them vulnerable to specific treatments.”

source: bbc

Ask me anything

Explore related questions

#blood#cancer#dna#prostate#test#treatment
> More World

Follow en.protothema.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news

See all the latest News from Greece and the World, the moment they happen, at en.protothema.gr

> Latest Stories

How Athens “unlocked” Trump in one year: Energy, defense, the role of Kimberly Guilfoyle and the Gerape­tritis–Rubio meeting

February 24, 2026

The Washington Post: Trump tightens the noose around Iran – US sends over 150 fighter jets to Europe and the Middle East

February 24, 2026

“Lockdown” at the port of Hydra: All shops to close for filming of the movie starring Brad Pitt

February 24, 2026

Plevris from Rome: Tolerance policies on migration belong to the past

February 24, 2026

Three reports, two lines on OPEKEPE: No criminal liability, says ND – Investigate Voridis and Avgenakis, opposition demands

February 24, 2026

Kyiv dismisses Russia’s claim on nuclear weapons as “absurd”

February 24, 2026

Putin issues threats on the 4th anniversary of the war in Ukraine: “Our adversaries know what will happen if they use nuclear weapons against us”

February 24, 2026

A strong “Yes” from Greeks abroad to Postal Voting and a three-seat constituency

February 24, 2026
All News

> Culture

“Lockdown” at the port of Hydra: All shops to close for filming of the movie starring Brad Pitt

The production paid compensation equivalent to the businesses’ daily turnover, while scenes will be filmed tomorrow with a “flying dolphin” at the port

February 24, 2026

The photos of a national trauma: This is the Nazi sergeant who photographed the executions in Kaisariani

February 23, 2026

Eleni Glykatzi-Arveler: How she changed the historical image of Byzantium

February 23, 2026

The Herodion closes for three years: It will reopen with a new entrance, roof, lighting, no speaker towers, and an expanded forecourt

February 20, 2026

Brad Pitt’s secluded accommodation on Hydra: Why he chose the small hotel in Vlychos (video-photos)

February 20, 2026
Homepage
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION POLICY COOKIES POLICY TERM OF USE
Powered by Cloudevo
Copyright © 2026 Πρώτο Θέμα